The most important stage of growing plants is the care of pepper seedlings after germination. You can correctly pick and process the seeds, but if you make mistakes with watering, lighting or air temperature, there is a risk of easily ruining the tender young sprouts of your favorite culture.
How to care for pepper seedlings after sprouting?
Even at the stage of preparing the seed material, the vegetable grower should determine how he will grow the seedlings. There are two main methods for obtaining seedlings - sowing in individual pots (cups) or in common boxes. Care of pepper seedlings in the second case requires mandatory picks , otherwise the sprouts will start to be affected by diseases and stretch, they will suffer from a lack of useful substances,
What affects the correct growth of pepper seedlings:
- temperature regime;
- brightness of lighting;
- composition of nutrient substrate;
- the size of the drawer or cup;
- frequency and quality of irrigation;
- top dressing;
- quality of performance of picking.
How to water pepper sprouts at home?
Properly planned care for young pepper seedlings after sprouting consists in timely watering, the drying of the substrate even for a short while tender shoots is extremely painful. But excessive moistening of the soil is undesirable, stagnation of water leads to a black stalk and death of the root system. Plants do not consume liquids immediately after emergence, but in time its volume increases. In this case the role is played by the size of the box, the composition of the soil and the density of planting. It is advisable to water the pepper seedlings at home and carry out a steady and purified melt water.
Simple ways to check the soil moisture:
- We get out of the box a little bit of soil and we make a lump in the hands, with a normal amount of moisture, it does not fall apart.
- With a thin twig, we make a deepening in the ground and take it out, if the tip of the wand is wet, then it's too early to water the boxes.
Poor growth of pepper seedlings, what to do?
Many beginning vegetable growers learn the secrets of growing pepper seedlings in their experience, often making a lot of annoying mistakes. It is advisable on the eve of sowing to read the advice of experienced people, to study the peculiarities of the growth of this culture, the technology of its cultivation. There is a list of the main causes that lead to diseases and even the death of weak seedlings.
Common causes of poor growth of pepper seedling:
- Lack of light.
- Subcooling and sudden temperature fluctuations in the room.
- Screws on the windowsill.
- Incorrect watering.
- Fertilizing seedlings with mineral fertilizers in violation of the instructions.
- Poor soil composition.
How to fertilize seedlings of tomatoes and peppers?
It is not recommended to introduce fertilizers at the initial stage of growth. If the soil before the sowing is prepared correctly, then the minerals in it are enough for the normal development of the sprouts. The first fertilization of seedlings of peppers is made 14 days after the picking process. The next application of nutrients is done after 2 weeks. You can care for pepper seedlings with the help of ready balanced fertilizers. Suitable sodium humate, preparations "Krepysh", "Ideal", "Agricola", "Rostorin" and their analogues, intended for solanaceous cultures.
How to pick pepper on seedlings?
Care of seedlings of pepper after sprouts rarely does without picks. This operation consists in transplanting our young seedlings from a common container into separate containers. This process is desirable to produce with the appearance of 2 strong real leaves with a deepening of the stem to 0.5 cm below the previous level. Correctly produced diving of pepper seedlings stimulates the development of the lateral roots and helps to provide the young plant with better growing conditions.
Picks of pepper seedlings:
- We buy plastic or peat cups of the required volume.
- We prepare the soil mixture and disinfect it with a solution of manganese.
- We fill the glasses with earth.
- For 1-2 hours on the eve of the picking, we water the boxes with the seedlings.
- Using a spatula, we separate the seedling from the total mass and transfer it into a glass.
- We try not to damage the thin stems of plants.
- Put pepper in the hole with a depth of half a centimeter.
- At the first watering we keep the seedling.
- Soil in a glass when sagging we pour to the required level.
Diseases of pepper seedlings
All diseases of pepper sprouts can be divided into two types - infectious and non-infectious. Infectious-type diseases require immediate treatment and are associated with infection with fungi, viruses or bacteria. Care of seedling pepper after emergence when signs of damage to harmful organisms appear is the drying of the soil, the adjustment of the temperature regime. The earth can be treated with fungicides or biofungicides ("Fitosporin"). Pepper leaves are sprayed with a Bordeaux liquid or other antifungal agent.
Infectious diseases of pepper:
- Blackleg.
- Wilting of seedlings - is caused by fungus fusarium or sclerocinia.
- Black spotting.
- Late blight.
- White rot.
- Gray rot.
- Viral diseases.
Why does pepper seedling die after sprouting?
Often, the causes of death of pepper seedlings are covered in substandard watering, violation of temperature conditions or poor lighting. Excess or lack of certain minerals can lead to growth inhibition and slow wilting of the green mass. Many pathogens of fungal diseases, viruses and bacteria are recorded with planting material and soil. Must disinfect the seeds and soil at the stage of preparation for planting.
Black leg of pepper seedling, what should I do?
The cause of this problem is infected soil. The black leg of pepper sprouts is spread more quickly in case of excessive soil wetting and increased temperature of the medium. The disease can be determined by the main signs - thinning and darkening of the stem, a constriction appears in the affected area, which immediately leads to the curvature of the sprout and its lodging. In some cases, if the plant is damaged before the transplant is planted in the garden, the pepper does not die, but grows poorly and yields a poor harvest.
Measures to combat black peppercorn:
- Do not allow the pepper to be taken care of after sprouting high humidity.
- Avoid dense crops.
- Obligatory disinfection of the substrate.
- Loosening the land.
- Airing room with seedlings.
- Sprinkling of the soil with wood ash or dry river sand.
- Immediate removal of sick pepper seedlings of their box.
- Treatment of the earth with a solution of potassium permanganate or fungicide.
Pepper seedling was stretched out, what should I do?
The main reasons for this problem - the installation of boxes with seedlings in a dark place without artificial lighting. Aggravate the situation of dense crops, frequent watering, high temperature of the environment, lag with a pick. If the pepper seedling has stretched, you should transfer the containers to a light window sill or immediately install lamps for lighting. Watering should be limited, the temperature reduced in bright light to 25 ° C, and in cloudy weather - up to 18 ° C. When a pair of real leaves appear, we immediately make a picking with the penetration of the stem.
Why does pepper seedling fall?
The main causes of death of seedlings are associated with gross mistakes made in the care of pepper seedlings when preparing soil and seeds for planting or at growing stages after the entrances. For example, surpluses of nitrogen fertilizers in the soil lead to excessive stretching of the stem and its lodging. Pepper sprouts often fall in early crops when there is a critical shortage of sunlight. If you do not immediately install lamps for lighting, then most of the plants will stretch, get sick and disappear.
Withering of the shoots occurs, as with abundant watering, which provoke a black leg and rot, and in a dry room. Try to maintain the humidity in the room with seedlings at a level of 60-65%. At the stage of pecking the seeds, it is necessary to maintain a high temperature, but after growing in the care it is desirable to reduce it to a comfortable reading of 23-25 ° C. A sharp drop in temperature to 12 ° C or watering with cold water can cause complete loss of seedlings.